CoinEx processed $3.84B in blockchain flows tied to sanctioned Iranian entities over seven years, in accordance with TRM Labs.
Blockchain intelligence agency TRM Labs traced over $3.84 billion in verified flows between CoinEx and sanctioned Iranian entities. The exercise spanned greater than seven years and touched over 60 Iranian cryptocurrency platforms.
CoinEx’s affiliated mining pool, ViaBTC, additionally options within the information.
Publicity runs throughout Nobitex, the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah.
Associated studying:
Iran’s Greatest Crypto Change Nobitex Linked to Elite Household Community
CoinEx Turned Nobitex’s Greatest Exterior Lifeline
TRM Labs discovered that $2.7 billion of the whole traced quantity moved between CoinEx and Nobitex alone. That works out to roughly $1 million per day since November 2018, throughout roughly 6.2 million particular person blockchain transfers.
By 2024, CoinEx ranked as Nobitex’s single largest exterior counterparty. The hole was important. The following largest named alternate trailed by practically 9 instances.
Annual quantity between the 2 hit $714 million in 2024 and climbed to $763 million in 2025. At that time, CoinEx dealt with round 16.3% of Nobitex’s whole annual transaction quantity.
Nobitex despatched roughly $360 million extra to CoinEx than it obtained. TRM Labs says this directional imbalance factors to crypto being systematically moved out of Iran by CoinEx to entry worldwide liquidity.
TRM Labs traced greater than USD 3.84 billion in blockchain-verified flows between CoinEx and sanctioned Iranian entities over seven years — spanning 50+ platforms, with publicity to Nobitex, the IRGC, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Hezbollah.
CoinEx was Nobitex’s single largest… pic.twitter.com/Madjj13V9z
— TRM Labs (@trmlabs) June 26, 2026
Iran’s Total Crypto Market Routes By way of CoinEx
TRM Labs recognized three patterns suggesting the CoinEx-Iran connection will not be unbiased market habits.
First, each main Iranian home alternate routes 5 to fifteen% of its whole quantity by CoinEx. That constant band throughout dozens of separate platforms is statistically uncommon for a free market.
Second, the onboarding timeline follows a sequential sample. Nobitex and Excoino started transacting with CoinEx in 2018.
Wallex, Ramzinex, and Sarmayex adopted in 2019. Bit Pin, Bit24, Aban Tether, and Ompfinex appeared between 2020 and 2021. TRM Labs says this resembles a shopper acquisition rollout fairly than natural discovery.
Third, even small obscure Iranian platforms carry direct CoinEx publicity. Tabdeal, Sarafi.io, Jibitex, and Xchange98 are amongst these listed.
TRM Labs additionally traced $67 million from the Central Financial institution of Iran into CoinEx addresses between June 2025 and June 2026. They had been routed by a multi-chain laundering scheme utilizing USDT-on-TRON, Ethereum bridges, Gnosis Secure contracts, and Aave protocol tokens.
ViaBTC, Terror Financing, and Put up-Sanctions Exercise
ViaBTC’s function goes past mining payouts. TRM Labs traced $154 million throughout 4.47 million transfers between ViaBTC and Nobitex-linked wallets.
After Predatory Sparrow’s 2025 cyberattack on Nobitex disrupted operations, 117 beforehand dormant Bitcoin mining wallets activated and despatched roughly $2.7 million to a brand new Nobitex sizzling pockets. ViaBTC was confirmed in these fund flows.
On the phobia financing aspect, TRM Labs discovered $6 million throughout 186 transfers to IRGC-linked wallets, $374,000 tied to Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and direct interplay with Hezbollah-linked addresses.
CoinEx’s share of illicit transaction quantity sits at practically 8%, in opposition to a 0.3% threshold thought-about typical for compliant exchanges.
Following OFAC sanctions in opposition to Nobitex, BitPin, Wallex, and Ramzinex on June 2, 2026, CoinEx cycled its sizzling wallets. Volumes between CoinEx and Iranian entities dropped under $150,000 after June 4.
TRM Labs notes these exchanges maintain accounts at CoinEx that aren’t seen on-chain and will nonetheless be transacting privately.